Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

Underground Written by Jeff Parker Art by Steve Lieber

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A conflict over Stillwater Cave forces two rangers to flee deep under the mountains, first to escape pursuers, and then the most deadliest threat – the cave itself! This volume collects the critically acclaimed mini-series by Jeff Parker and Steve Lieber and includes extra material including a Wesley Fischer solo story.

Salute the Dark (Shadows of the Apt, Book 4) by Adrian Tchaikovsky

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The vampiric sorcerer Uctebri has at last got his hands on the Shadow Box and can finally begin his dark ritual – a ritual that the Wasp-kinden Emperor believes will grant him immortality – but Uctebri has his own plans both for the Emperor and the Empire. The massed Wasp armies are on the march, and the spymaster Stenwold must see which of his allies will stand now that the war has finally arrived. This time the Empire will not stop until a black and gold flag waves over Stenwold’s own home city of Collegium. Tisamon the Weaponsmaster is faced with a terrible choice: a path that could lead him to abandon his friends and his daughter, to face degradation and loss, but that might possibly bring him before the Wasp Emperor with a blade in his hand – but is he being driven by Mantis-kinden honour, or manipulated by something more sinister?

The Game from Where I Stand: A Ballplayer’s Inside View by Doug Glanville

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An insider’s revealing look at the hidden world of major league baseball

Doug Glanville, a former major league outfielder and Ivy League graduate, draws on his nine seasons in the big leagues to reveal the human side of the game and of the men who play it.

In The Game from Where I Stand, Glanville shows us how players prepare for games, deal with race and family issues, cope with streaks and slumps, respond to trades and injuries, and learn the joyful and painful lessons the game imparts. We see the flashpoints that cause misunderstandings and friction between players, and the imaginative ways they work to find common ground. And Glanville tells us with insight and humor what he learned from Jimmy Rollins, Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, Barry Bonds, Curt Schilling, and other legendary and controversial stars.

In his professional career, Glanville experienced every aspect of being a player—the first-round pick, the prospect, the disappointment, the can’t-miss, the cornerstone, the veteran, the traded, the injured, the comeback kid. His eye-opening book gives fans a new level of understanding of day-to-day life in the big leagues.

Watch for my review in the next couple of weeks.

More in Part III

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

Go, Mutants! by Larry Doyle

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The author of I Love You, Beth Cooper returns with an ingenious contemporary satire set in an alternate universe populated by the aliens, mutants, and atomic monsters of B-movie legend.

It came to Earth . . . and now its spawn goes to high school.

Earth has survived repeated alien invasions, attacks by hordes of mutants, and the ravages of ancient beasts brought back to life. Now we’re in the blissful future…for most.

J!m, the son of the alien who nearly destroyed the planet, is a brooding, megacephalic rebel with a big forehead and exceptionally oily skin. Along with Johnny, a radioactive biker ape, and Jelly, a gelatinous mass passing as a fat kid, J!m navigates a particularly unpleasant adolescence in which he really is as alienated as he feels, the world might actu-ally be out to get him, and true love is complicated by mis-understanding and incompatible parts. As harmless school antics escalate into explosive events with tragic consequences, J!m makes a discovery that will alter the course of civilization, though it may help his dating life.

Replete with all the rock ‘n’ roll, hot-rod racing, and heavy petting of classic teen cinema—and packed with famous film-monster cameos—Go, Mutants! is fun strapped to an atomic rocket, and Doyle’s deadpan delivery and razor-sharp wit will have you laughing out loud before he even starts the ignition sequence.

Dragon Soul by Jaida Jones & Danielle Bennett

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With just two novels under their belts, young writers Jaida Jones and Danielle Bennett have established themselves as two of the hottest new stars in fantasy. Havemercy introduced readers to a brilliantly realized world riven by an intractable war between the kingdoms of Volstov and Ke-Han—a war in which the great dragons of Volstov—deadly hybrids of machine and magic—and their equally fierce human riders were all that kept the dark sorcery of Ke-Han at bay. In Shadow Magic, Jones and Bennett brought the common humanity of the opposing sides to life in an adventure that showcased once again their talent for creating not only fantastic settings but vivid characters to inhabit them.

Now Jones and Bennett are back with their most accomplished novel yet, featuring the return of two beloved characters, the brothers Rook and Thom. When the war was at its height, there was no fighter on either side who could match Rook for sheer arrogance and skill. Only Rook could ride the great dragon Havemercy, whose savagery and bloodlust matched his own. Thom could not be more different. Bookish, diffident, reserved, he yearns for his brother’s approval—yet fears he can never earn it.

With the war over, and an uneasy truce holding between Volstov and Ke-Han, it seems the perfect opportunity for the long-lost brothers to forge a bond by taking a trip together. At least, that’s how it seems to Thom. Rook hasn’t given a rat’s ass about anything since the end of the war, his brother included, and he’s not about to start now. Not when the one thing he loved in the world—Havemercy—lies scattered in pieces across Ke-Han.

Then Rook and Thom discover that someone is buying up bits of the fallen dragons, including Havemercy. Though the dragons are dead, the magic that powered them is not—and if that magic and the technology created to harness it should fall into the wrong hands, the fragile peace could shatter. An agent from Ke-Han, a sorceress from Volstov, and a group of desert tribesmen are all in the race, and the future rests on whoever gets there first. But all that matters to Rook is that someone is desecrating his girl, so he vows to leave no stone unturned in laying her to rest—and taking his revenge.

Yellow Rose of Texas: The Myth of Emily Morgan Written by Douglas Brode Art by Joe Orsak

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This book tells the fact-based story of Emily Morgan/West, the African-American woman who inspired the world-famous folk song that lends this graphic novel its title. Though almost everyone in America has heard the song, few are aware that the yellow rose of Texas it pays tribute to was a woman by the name of Emily. Her story, which has varied in the telling over the past 175 years, reveals the Texas war for independence through the eyes of a black woman who survived the Alamo and played an important part in winning the day–and the war–at San Jacinto a month and a half later. Though the story of Texas is told here with faithful attention to historical detail, the story of Emily is elevated to a romantic myth that will engage readers of all ages.

I interviewed Brode last year for the San Antonio Current and later published the excised bits in this very blog.

More in Part I

Although I’ve always loved board games, I had fallen out of the habit of playing. And even back when I was playing, most of my games consisted of Trivial Pursuit and Scrabble combined with the occasional Risk. That all changed when author extraordinare and occasional co-conspirator Paul Miles invited me to join him and his brother Jonathan for their Great Hall Games Friday night sessions.

With a friendly staff and an impressive selection, Great Hall Games functions as meeting place for a large swath of the Austin, TX board gaming community. (Incredibly, Austin also supports two other large and busy shops that feature board games: Dragon’s Lair and Battleforge Games.) The back half of the shop is two large rooms dedicated for game play. The space plays host to a variety of different types of groups depending on the day.

TUESDAY
Go Night, Host Austin Go Club, 6:30-midnight

WEDNESDAY
Chess Night, Host Gene Kohnitz, 6:30-10:00

THURSDAY
Historical Miniatures, paint & talk militaria and wargame rules, Host Lone Star Historical Miniatures, 6:30-10:00,

FRIDAY
Evening Boardgames, 6:30-Midnight

SATURDAY
Afternoon Boardgames, Host Austin Boardgame Group, Noon-8:00

SUNDAY
Historical Miniatures Battles, Host Lone Star Historical Miniatures, 12:30-6:00
1st Sunday: 20th Century
2nd Sunday: Horse and Musket
3rd Sunday: Ancients & Medievals
4th & 5th Sundays: open

By 7, the Friday night meetings are often standing room only with 10-12 games going on.

The first time I joined the Brothers Miles, they introduced me to Nexus Ops and Citadels. Soon after Paul showed me the amazing Cold War simulation Twilight Struggle. I was hooked! Before long, we were meeting twice monthly and then I joined the social networking community Board Game Geek.

BGG supplies a forum for game enthusiasts to exchange views on games including reviews, a ratings system, FAQs, hacks, and a way to record individual plays. They host contests and giveaways. (I won a copy of Frontline General: Spearpoint 1943)

Additionally, the site facilitates trades between users. I began cleaning out my closets as well as trolling used bookstores and thrift shops looking for some older games to trade. Now, I’m an almost daily visitor (my BGG profile).

As if baseball, comics, books, apes, movies, and Linux weren’t enough, I can now count board games among my obsessions. Thanks, Paul.

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

The Evolutionary Void by Peter F. Hamilton

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Peter F. Hamilton concludes the highly acclaimed Commonwealth saga that has unfolded in The Dreaming Void and The Temporal Void.

Transformers: Exodus: The Official History of the War for Cybertron by Alex Irvine

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For twenty-five years the colossal battle between Megatron and Optimus Prime has captivated Transformers fans around the world. Yet the full story of the conflict between the two most famous Transformers—everything that happened before Optimus and Megatron arrived on planet Earth—has always been a mystery . . . until now. Here, for the first time told in its entirety, is the thrilling saga of Optimus and Megatron before they were enemies, before they even knew each other.

“Freedom is every Cybertronian’s right!” After Megatron utters these immortal words, the caste-bound planet of Cybertron is rocked to its foundations. Megatron, an undefeated gladiator thug, gives voice to the unspoken longings of the oppressed masses—and opens the mind of an insignificant data clerk to possibilities previously unthinkable.

Long before becoming the honorable Optimus Prime, Orion Pax is a mere office underling, an unlikely candidate to answer an outlaw’s call to revolution. But Orion is determined to meet this defiant enemy of all that Cybertron stands for, no matter what he has to do, or how many laws he has to break.

What happens between Orion Pax and Megatron forever changes the destiny of all Transformers. This gripping, action-packed novel reveals all the loyalties and treacheries, trust and betrayals, deadly violence and shining ideals, as well as the pivotal roles played by other characters, including Starscream, Sentinel Prime, Omega Supreme, and one of the thirteen original Primes, the last link to Cybertron’s glorious Golden Age.

Discover how meek disciple Orion Pax becomes the fearless leader Optimus Prime; follow the tantalizing clues about the lost Matrix of Leadership and the lore surrounding it; find out why the two allies fighting a corrupt regime suddenly turn on each other, and what triggers their epic war.

Transformers: Exodus provides everything fans ever wanted to know about one of the fiercest rivalries of all time.

Bearers of the Black Staff (Legends of Shannara) by Terry Brooks

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The Genesis of Shannara trilogy – Armageddon’s Children, The Elves of Cintra, and The Gypsy Morph – charted the fall of our own world into the hands of once-men and demons…and the escape of a few humans, Elves, and others into a remote mountain valley walled in by impenetrable magic. For five-hundred years the survivors have lived peacefully, learning to coexist and to build a new world with the limited resources and skills available to them. Now the magic that kept them safe for so many centuries is wearing down. Frightening creatures are penetrating the barriers and wreaking havoc on the valley within. It is time for the four peoples to stand together and create the new world of Shannara.

Today the popular blog /Film featured an image of Naomi Watts as Marylin Monroe from director Andrew Dominik’s forthcoming film Blonde, a biopic of legendary actress.

Watts as Monroe

While no doubt that Watts is a looker, she lacks the significant curves of Monroe. Watts official measurements are 32-25-34. Monroe measured either 37-23-36 (Studio’s Claim) or 35-22-35 (Dressmaker’s Claim).

The voluptuous Monroe

The waifish Watts

Anyway you look at it, the petite Watts will require a lot of padding to make her portrayal believable.

For SF Site, I reviewed the latest Russell Crowe/Ridley Scott collaboration Robin Hood.

Check out the entire review over at SF Site.

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

The Schizophrenic #1 Written by Josh Frankel Art by T. Cypress

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The Schizophrenic is about a schizophrenic named Sam who has elaborate hallucinations that manifest into real life! The twist is that each issue, Sam’s hallucinations manifest in the form of a different comics genre, the first being the superhero genre, and upcoming ones being horror, romance, sci-fi and so on.

God of War by Matthew Stover and Robert E. Vardeman

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Offering deeper insights into the critically acclaimed God of War® franchise, this novel returns us to the dark world of ancient Greek mythology explored in the heart-pounding action of God of War I[i], the bestselling video game.

A brutal warrior, Kratos is a slave to the gods of Olympus. Plagued by the nightmares of his past and yearning for freedom, the Ghost of Sparta would do anything to be free of his debt to the gods. He is on the verge of losing all hope when the gods give him one last task to end his servitude.

He must destroy Ares, the god of war.

But what chance does a mere mortal have against a god? Armed with the deadly chained Blades of Chaos, guided by the goddess Athena, and driven by his own insatiable thirst for vengeance, Kratos seeks the only relic powerful enough to slay Ares . . . a quest that will take him deep into the mysterious temple borne by the Titan Cronos!

From the black depths of Hades to the war-torn city of Athens to the lost desert beyond, [i]God of War sheds a brutal new light on the bestselling video game and on the legend of Kratos.

Cartoon Cute Animals: How to Draw the Most Irresistible Creatures on the Planet by Christopher Hart

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This title is for a broad audience of aspiring cartoonists and animators who are looking to infuse personality into their animal drawings. It is from bestselling author Christopher Hart. In addition to the many examples of the cuddliest dogs, cats and bunnies, there are a whole host of charming exotic animals. Cartoon animals are the essential subject matter for all cartoonists and animation artists, whether they are aspiring or professional. As bestselling author Christopher Hart shares in depth in his latest tutorial, there is a secret to developing charming, cute and irresistible animals. This book is totally devoted to the warm and fuzzy world of creatures that everyone can’t help but love. In a fresh twist, the book shows many exotic animals, which also make for wonderfully cute characters. So in addition to many examples of the cuddliest dogs, cats and bunnies, there are a whole host of charming exotic animals: ferrets, badgers, lemurs, walruses, zebras, sea otters, ostriches, pelicans and much more!

The Machinery of Light by David J. Williams

Promo copy:

With The Machinery of Light, David J. Williams completes his furiously paced, stunningly imagined trilogy—a work of vision, beauty, and pulse-pounding futuristic action.

September 26, 2110. 10:22 GMT. Following the assassination of the American president, the generals who have seized power initiate World War Three, launching a surprise attack against the Eurasian Coalition’s forces throughout the Earth-Moon system. Across the orbits, tens of thousands of particle beams and lasers blast away at one another. The goal: crush the other side’s weaponry, paving the way for nuclear bombardment of the cities.

As inferno becomes Armageddon, the rogue commando unit Autumn Rain embarks on one last run. Matthew Sinclair, an imprisoned spymaster, plots his escape. And his former protégé Claire Haskell, capable of hacking into both nets and minds, is realizing that all her powers may merely be playing into Sinclair’s plans. For even as Claire evades the soldiers of East and West amid carnage in the lunar tunnels, the surviving members of the Rain converge upon the Moon, one step ahead of the Eurasian fleets but one step behind the mastermind who created Autumn Rain—and his terrible final secret.

Part II

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

The White Road by Lynn Flewelling

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Dissolute nobles, master spies, and the unlikeliest of heroes, Alec and Seregil have survived exile, treachery, and black magic. But the road that lies ahead is the most hazardous they’ve ever traveled. For with enemies on all sides, they must walk a narrow path between good and evil where one misstep might be their last.

Having escaped death and slavery in Plenimar, Alec and Seregil want nothing more than to go back to their nightrunning life in Rhíminee. Instead they find themselves saddled with Sebrahn, a strange, alchemically created creature—the prophesied “child of no woman.” Its moon-white skin and frightening powers make Sebrahn a danger to all whom Alec and Seregil come into contact with, leaving them no choice but to learn more about Sebrahn’s true nature.

With the help of trusted friends and Seregil’s clan, the duo set out to discover the truth about this living homunculus—a journey that can lead only to danger or death. For Seregil’s old nemesis Ulan í Sathil of Virèsse and Alec’s own long-lost kin are after them, intent on possessing both Alec and Sebrahn. On the run and hunted, Alec and his comrades must fight against time to accomplish their most personal mission ever.

Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi Omen by Christie Golden

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The Jedi Order is in crisis. The late Jacen Solo’s shocking transformation into murderous Sith Lord Darth Caedus has cast a damning pall over those who wield the Force for good: Two Jedi Knights have succumbed to an inexplicable and dangerous psychosis, criminal charges have driven Luke Skywalker into self-imposed exile, and power-hungry Chief of State Natasi Daala is exploiting anti-Jedi sentiment to undermine the Order’s influence within the Galactic Alliance.

Forbidden to intervene in Jedi affairs, Luke is on a desperate mission to uncover the truth behind Jacen’s fall to the dark side–and to learn what’s turning peaceful Jedi into raving lunatics. But finding answers will mean venturing into the mind-bending space of the Kathol Rift and bargaining with an alien species as likely to destroy outsiders as deal with them. Still, there is no other choice and no time to lose, as the catastrophic events on Coruscant continue to escalate. Stricken by the same violent dementia that infected her brother, Valin, Jedi Knight Jysella Horn faces an equally grim fate after her capture by Natasi Daala’s police. And when Han and Leia Solo narrowly foil another deranged Jedi bent on deadly destruction, even acting Jedi Grand Master Kenth Hamner appears willing to bow to Daala’s iron will–at the expense of the Jedi Order.

But an even greater threat is looming. Millennia in the past, a Sith starship crashed on an unknown low-tech planet, leaving the survivors stranded. Over the generations, their numbers have grown, the ways of the dark side have been nurtured, and the time is fast approaching when this lost tribe of Sith will once more take to the stars to reclaim their legendary destiny as rulers of the galaxy. Only one thing stands in their way, a name whispered to them through the Force: Skywalker.

Unholy Ghosts by Stacia Kane

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The world is not the way it was. The dead have risen, and the living are under attack. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. Enter Chess Putnam, a fully tattooed witch and freewheeling ghost hunter. She’s got a real talent for banishing the wicked dead. But Chess is keeping a dark secret: She owes a lot of money to a murderous drug lord named Bump, who wants immediate payback in the form of a dangerous job that involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust for a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump’s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah.

Part I

For Moving Pictures, I reviewed the indy thriller, In My Sleep.

Read my complete report on this nightmare at Moving Pictures.

John Coulthart blogged about his designs for the forthcoming Savoy publication Into the Media Web, a collection of Michael Moorcock’s nonfiction work.

This being about design, Coulthart shares some of his inspired work.

In the piece, he delves even further into the design.

Coulthart does supply this bit of sobering news.